1. Field
The present invention generally relates to secure, portable containers and, in particular, a dockable multi-compartment sub-drawer with latching lids.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hospitals often manage the storage and dispensing of medications for patients using an Automated Dispensing Machine (ADM). The ADM usually resides near or at the nursing station and contains items that cover the needs of the patients in a designated area within the hospital.
A common problem of ADMs is that the nurse must make several trips between the bedside of a patient and the ADM in the course of caring for a patient. The nurse first must travel from her current location, often the nursing station, to the patient to determine the patient's needs. When a medication is required, the nurse must then travel back to the nursing station and log into the ADM and identify the desired medication, whereupon the ADM dispenses the medication to the nurse. The nurse then must travel back to the patient to administer the medication, after which the nurse returns to the nursing station or other activity.
Another problem of ADMs is that a single ADM cannot contain every medication used by the hospital. Some medications are used so infrequently that a dose of the medication in a typical ADM would likely expire prior to being required for a patient. Some medications are expensive and hospitals cannot afford to stock these medications in locations where it is not currently prescribed to a patient. When one of these medications is newly prescribed, a pharmacist or pharmacy technician must carry the newly prescribed medication to the ADM nearest to the patient and load the medication into the ADM. This often requires removal of a different medication from the ADM to provide space for the new medication.
One current system for securely transporting medications includes single-compartment receptacles having a latching lid that are secure during transport and can be opened only when docked to an appropriate docking station. Such a transportable receptacle is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,116,461 to Broadfield et al., which is hereby incorporated herein by reference. U.S. Pat. No. 6,116,461 discloses that the pharmacy uses a docking station to open the receptacle and load one or more doses of a medication into the receptacle. The receptacle is then transported to an ADM that is equipped with a drawer having docking stations and the receptacle is placed in one of the drawer's docking stations. The medications in the receptacle are then available to be dispensed to the nurses at the ADM. One potential drawback with this system is that each receptacle contains a single medication, whereas a typical patient in a hospital may be receiving a dozen or more medications.